The knock at the door is incessant and annoying, as Rocky’s knocks always are… today, though, the two of you can probably forgive him. It’s a special morning after all.
Ryland opens the door and leans against it, though more out of exhaustion than his usually coolness. From where you sit on the bed, you can see Rocky eagerly bobbing around, affecting the human mannerism of trying to see behind someone. It’s cute, the way those two copy each other.
“We come in, question?” Rocky asks immediately. Your Eridian isn’t word-perfect - pitch-perfect, you suppose, actually - but you can make out about ninety percent of words without needing a translator.
“Not even a ‘hello’? Nice one, bud,” Ryland chuckles.
“Rocky not care about Grace, Rocky and Adrian want to see Grace mate and new human.”
“You don’t care about me! Hon, he says he doesn’t care about me, can you believe that? In our own microclimate dome.”
You roll your eyes at them both, fondly. Your new daughter stirs in your arms. When you speak, your voice is soft, so as not to wake her.
“You guys can come in, it’s okay. She’s sleeping right now.”
Adrian walks into your home calmly, using their large body to force Rocky to slow down. Even then you can hear him mutter “excite excite excite!” to himself as he bounces. Adrian holds back at the entrance to the bedroom and gives the Eridian equivalent of a best friend’s excited gasp.
“Human pebble so small! She is meant to be this small, question? She is okay, question?” Adrian asks, trotting up to your side and plonking down.
“She was a little early, but your scientists were amazing. I’m sure Earth births are far worse, honestly.”
It wasn’t easy, but you had a whole team of biologists assigned specially to you to make sure you gave birth as safely as possible. Even your “doula” was pretty great. Now your new daughter just needs to adjust to her new life in this strange world, as all babies do. Though, admittedly, her world is a little stranger than most.
Ryland sits down next to you on the bed, putting his arm around your shoulders for comfort without realising. Rocky shifts his carapace this way and that as he takes in the baby from all angles.
“Can Rocky touch, question?”
“Rocky…” warns Adrian, but you laugh gently.
“Sure, but just be gentle. She’s not as robust as me and Grace.”
“Grace not robust. Grace leak constantly. Grace leaking right now.”
You look up to see tears in Ryland’s eyes. He laughs self-consciously and wipes them away with a sleeve.
“Sorry. Just can’t get over how perfect you two look.”
He gives you a brief but tender kiss as Rocky approaches. Slowly one of his little hands comes out to run across your baby’s hair, playing with the soft patch of it she was born with. In her sleep she shifts and reaches out… grabbing onto one of Rocky’s fingers with her tight newborn grip.
“Wow, she likes you, Rock,” Ryland says.
“Amaze amaze amaze,” Rocky whispers. “Rocky never move again, not so long as pebble holding on.”
Later, you’ll ask them to be the godparents of your daughter, after a length conversation about what that means. For now, though, you let her be surrounded by four people who already love her.
